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DRE8TF
Worksheet · 1.1 At school A ©

Porto
Name: No.: Class: Date: / /

Reading
Read the text carefully.

What’s it like in
A.
Hofsstaðaskóli is Icela
nd?
an elementary school for students from 6-12 years of age. It
has 555 students and a teaching staff of 45. There are about 45 other
employees. Our school is one of five elementary schools in a town called
Garðabær, which is located about 14 kilometres from the centre of Reykjavik, the
capital of Iceland.
B.
The school opens at 8 o’clock and students can come inside and start their day
with some “calm time” in their classroom. The formal school day starts at 8.30
am and the length of each day can vary. Usually, students finish their school day
between 1-3 pm. Students have two breaks during the day to eat – a small
snack in the morning in their classroom and a lunch break around noon in the
hall where they can sit with their classmates and enjoy a warm lunch they buy at
school.
C.
In the younger grades in Icelandic schools, students are divided into classes.
Each class has a class teacher who teaches the academic subjects. Most
classes have 18-24 students. The class then goes to another classroom and
different teachers for the hands-on1 subjects such as art, carpentry, PE and
home education.
D.
Maths and English are taught in “rainbow groups” (blue, red, yellow, green). In
these classes we divide each grade of students according to their skill level in
the subject. Each group varies in its emphasis2 on the curriculum3 and the speed
with which subject areas are taught. The strongest group, blue, goes faster in
the subject matter and gets more “extra” materials while the slower groups get
more time to acquire basic skills. The number of students in each group can vary
a great deal. The largest blue groups can have up to 30 students and the yellow
and green groups often only have 6-10 students.
E.
The school has three special education teachers for students with learning
difficulties, four social educators and a guidance counsellor on staff. It also has
a psychiatrist and a speech therapist who come once a week. There are also
five staff members who assist students in class, either as full support for
individual
students with severe disabilities for shorter periods of time.
or as support for difficult classes
Dre@m help
1
hands-on (adj): doing something rather than just talking about
it
2
emphasis (n): special importance that is given to something
3
curriculum (n): the subjects that are included in a course of
study
 F.
While access and level of use may differ from one school to another, depending on
support and school policy, Icelandic schools are very well equipped with IT tools. This
is particularly true for compulsory and upper secondary schools. Furthermore, high–
speed internet access is common throughout the school system.

hofsstadaskoli.is (adapted)

A. Write the following headings in the correct place in the text.

Support network About the school Learning at different speeds

The school day Implementation of IT Classroom structure

B. Read the sentences and mark them as true (T), false (F) or not stated (NS).

1. The school has a total of 95 teachers.

2. Hofsstaðaskóli Elementary School is in the centre of Reykjavik.
3. Classes don’t always end at the same time.
4. Students have to buy lunch at school.
5. In higher grades, students aren’t divided into classes.
6. Students have subjects where life skills are taught.
7. The weaker students tend to get left behind.
8. Most students don’t struggle with maths and English.
9. Students with special needs are taught separately.
10. Hofsstaðaskóli Elementary School isn’t as well equipped as other schools in
terms of IT.

C. Find words in the text with the same meaning as the following:

1. focus (paragraph D)
2. help (paragraph E)
3. someone who advises others (paragraph E)
4. obligatory (paragraph F)
5. additionally (paragraph F)

D. What do the words in bold in the text refer to?

1. Paragraph A: which
2. Paragraph B: their ; where
3. Paragraph C: who
4. Paragraph D: with which
5. Paragraph E: it ; who
DRE8TF© Porto
Editora
 Editora
DRE8TF
Worksheet · 1.1 At school B ©

Porto
Name: No.: Class: Date: / /

Reading
Read the text carefully.

What’s it like in
A.
Hofsstaðaskóli is an Icela nd?
elementary school for students from 6-12 years of age. It has
555 students and a teaching staff of 45. There are about 45 other employees.
Our school is one of five elementary schools in a town called Garðabær, which is
located about 14 kilometres from the centre of Reykjavik, the capital of Iceland.
B.
The school opens at 8 o’clock and students can come inside and start their day with
some “calm time” in their classroom. The formal school day starts at 8.30 am
and the length of each day can vary. Usually, students finish their school day
between 1-3 pm. Students have two breaks during the day to eat – a small
snack in the morning in their classroom and a lunch break around noon in the
hall where they can sit with their classmates and enjoy a warm lunch they buy at
school.
C.
In the younger grades in Icelandic schools, students are divided into classes.
Each class has a class teacher who teaches the academic subjects. Most
classes have 18-24 students. The class then goes to another classroom and
different teachers for the hands-on1 subjects such as art, carpentry, PE and
home education.
D.
Maths and English are taught in “rainbow groups” (blue, red, yellow, green). In
these classes we divide each grade of students according to their skill level in
the subject. Each group varies in its emphasis2 on the curriculum3 and the speed
with which subject areas are taught. The strongest group, blue, goes faster in
the subject matter and gets more “extra” materials while the slower groups get
more time to acquire basic skills. The number of students in each group can vary
a great deal. The largest blue groups can have up to 30 students and the yellow
and green groups often only have 6-10 students.
E.
The school has three special education teachers for students with learning
difficulties, four social educators and a guidance counsellor on staff. It also has
a psychiatrist and a speech therapist who come once a week. There are also
five staff members who assist students in class, either as full support for
individual
students with severe disabilities or Dre@m help

as support for difficult classes for hands-on (adj): doing something rather than just talking about it
1

emphasis (n): special importance that is given to something

2

shorter periods of time. curriculum (n): the subjects that are included in a course of study
3
 F.
While access and level of use may differ from one school to another, depending on
support and school policy, Icelandic schools are very well equipped with IT tools. This
is particularly true for compulsory and upper secondary schools. Furthermore, high–
speed internet access is common throughout the school system.

hofsstadaskoli.is (adapted)

A. Write the following headings in the correct place in the text.

Support network About the school Learning at different speeds

The school day Implementation of IT Classroom structure

B. Read the sentences and mark them as true (T) or false (F).

1. The school has a total of 95 teachers.

2. Hofsstaðaskóli Elementary School is in the centre of Reykjavik.
3. Classes don’t always end at the same time.
4. Students have a hot meal at school.
5. Academic subjects are taught by the class teachers.
6. Students have subjects where life skills are taught.
7. The weaker students tend to get left behind.
8. Most students don’t struggle with maths and English.
9. Students with special needs are taught separately.
10. Icelandic schools are normally very well equipped in terms of IT.

C. Match the words from the text to their corresponding meaning.

1. focus (paragraph D) a) furthermore

2. help (paragraph E) b) (guidance) counsellor
3. someone who advises others (paragraph E) c) emphasis
4. obligatory (paragraph F) d) assist
5. additionally (paragraph F) e) compulsory

D. What do the words in bold in the text refer to?

1. Paragraph A: which
2. Paragraph B: their ; where
3. Paragraph C: who
DRE8TF© Porto
Editora